Merlyn Richard Berry

Richard Berry, age 93, of Perrysburg, Ohio, died at the Ohio Veterans Home in Sandusky on January, 19, 2015. He was born on August 24, 1921 in Dowling, Ohio at the home and general store of his parents Henry E. and Lilly Mae Berry.

Drawing, painting, art and design were his first and last earthly interests. His other interests were playing football and basketball at Perrysburg High School and baseball for Pemberville American Legion team for the state championship. Dancing fulfilled his later years, which he learned early at the Trianon Ballroom.

WWII interrupted a later acquired degree at Bowling Green University. The U.S. Navy honored his entry test result options of Officer Training School at Oklahoma University. He chose to attend Oklahoma University Electronics Engineering. He then went to San Francisco Navy Radar School and his final duty was in the Pacific abroad the destroyer USS Hudson DD-475.

After several combat invasions, submarine and suicide plane attacks, he was honorably discharged with US Navy commendations. After his return home to Dowling, Ohio, he then attended Ohio State University majoring in Physical Education and football sports. While there, he was offered a professorship in Art. He went on to teach and coached football and basketball at Troy, Luckey and Grand Rapids High Schools. Later, he became an electronic engineering professor at Owens Community College. He also taught at ITT Tech Institute and Scott High School.

Richard worked for the US Navy on aircraft carrier ships and submarines as a civilian engineer. His work on submarine trial runs and their electronic systems, designs and testing led to another commendation from the US Navy. After leaving RCA electronic engineering work on submarines at Portsmouth, New Hampshire Naval Base, he rejected a Redstone guided missile job opportunity. Instead, he returned to Toledo Scale as a service manager of electronic weighing systems. His next career move was a creative writer for a consultant firm. This led to a creative writer's job at Dana Corporation. He then became personnel training director at Zeller Corporation.

He also was an active designer and artist. His proposal for a National WWII memorial in Washington, DC was one of 5 final designs considered. His design of the Korean War Memorial in Bowling Green, Ohio is standing currently on the courthouse grounds. He and his son David also built a website for WWII veterans, which remains online today.

His fraternal organization memberships included: past commander of the V.F. W., American Legion, Maumee Eagles and the Elks Lodge.

He was preceded in death by his parents, his first wife F. Joanne, his son Dennis Richard, his brother Claude, and two sisters Helen and Opal. He is survived by his daughter Debra Dale "Divya" (Hari) Darling, his son David Henry, grandsons Eric, Jack, and Trent, granddaughters Sara and Bharati, great-grandsons Alexander, Eric John and Gabriel, great-granddaughter Isabella, and a friend Bernadine Beatty.

The family will receive guests from 10:00m a.m. –Noon on Saturday, January 31, 2015 at Newcomer Funeral Home, 4752 Heatherdowns Blvd. (419-381-1900). The Funeral Service will begin at Noon. Burial will take place at New Belleville Ridge Cemetery.

Donations in Richard's memory are suggested to the Ohio Veterans Home Resident Benefit Fund (OVH-RBF), Attention: Treasury, 3416 Columbus Avenue, Sandusky, Ohio 44870. Earmark the check or insert note "in memory of Richard Berry."